Warming Up With You
by Verona Madrid
Summary: An ice storm hits the apartment Cas and Dean share, and the heat goes out. How are they going to stay warm?


Fucking old buildings.

Shivering as he pulled his comforter up to his chin, Dean was sure he had never felt this cold. Okay, there was that one time he'd fell through the ice while on that lake ice fishing with Sam and Bobby a couple years ago, which was totally not his fault- his moose of a brother had tossed his beer down the ice into unknowingly dangerous territory and he wasn't about to not go get it- but lying in bed with the heating out during an ice storm was a close second. He rubbed his bare legs together under the blankets and contemplated getting up to put on some flannel pyjamas, but the air in the apartment was even more frigid than being in his makeshift blanket burrito, and he just couldn't be assed.

"I left another message for the superintendent." Castiel informed his roommate as he shuffled into Dean's room, heavy duvet wrapped around his heavily clothed body, a mug in his hand. "Hopefully they will be able to look into our situation tomorrow."

Dean nodded as his roommate set the steaming mug on the night table, spoon sticking out the top at an angle. Dean eyed it with desire, watching as the heat rose from it in visible waves.

"I made us hot chocolate." Castiel explained, gesturing to the mug with a covered hand. "I thought you might need some warming up."

Smiling gratefully and peeling the covers back slightly, the brown-haired man sat up and flicked on the bedside lamp. He grabbed the mug, warmth seeping from its surface and into his hands, which were well on their way to becoming stiff with cold. He smiled up at his roommate as he moved his fingers to grab the spoon and stir the drink with his left hand, touched at the other man's thoughtfulness.

Castiel returned the smile easily, his bright blue eyes full of affection in the lamp light. He reached a hand out from his bundle of blankets and touched Dean's arm, fingers surprisingly un-chilled, action more of a slight caress than a brotherly pat.

"Thanks, Cas." Dean said, stirring forgotten at the sudden physical contact. He could feel his skin tingle where Castiel touched him, like he always could, and he felt a little warmer already.

"Sleep well, Dean." The dark-haired man intoned, smile upturned at the side, eyes almost shining with caring. He rubbed his roommate's arm briefly before turning to leave, shutting the door quietly behind him.

Dean breathed out a sigh as the door clicked into place. His feelings for Castiel had been slowly progressing into the not-so-platonic realm for a while now, and he was feeling a little concerned about it. It wasn't that his roommate was a guy; that part of Dean's sexuality was something he'd made peace with back in high school after a particularly heavy crush on a boy named Aaron, followed by some experimentation in college with a guy named Benny. No, he was fine with that.

But Castiel was special, their relationship like a well-oiled machine- they cohabited in wonderful sync with each other. Dean made breakfast while Castiel made their lunches for work everyday, Dean dropped his roommate off at work and picked him up afterwards, they had bad movie nights on Wednesdays and laundry together on Sunday mornings. They texted back and forth during the day. It was all so disgustingly domestic, but it was calm and perfect and _theirs_ and Dean didn't want anything ruining it, especially something as stupid as his feelings.

Dean sipped his hot chocolate, noting the hint of cinnamon as the spice met his nose and tongue when he took his first taste. He smiled into the cup; Castiel had made it just the way he knew he liked it, having used an extra half-packet of mix to make it just a little more chocolately. He imagined the half-used hot chocolate package tucked back into the box, carefully folded over at the top so none of the powder spilled out, waiting to be used the next time Dean craved a treat. No marshmallows though; that was Castiel's thing, with honey. That man had a sweet tooth that rivalled that of his brother Gabriel sometimes.

For as much as Castiel knew about Dean, Dean knew as much about Castiel. He knew how he liked scent-free fabric softener, how he hated water spots on the silverware and would shine every piece before transferring them from the dishwasher to the drawer, how he loved bad zombie movies the best. He knew that the left end of the couch was his favourite spot to read because the lighting was the best, and that he could read Pride and Prejudice over and over without getting tired of it. Or that he was rubbish in the morning without at least two cups of coffee... that last one Dean had learned the hard way, multiple times.

They'd always lived seamlessly in each others orbit, ever since becoming friends in high school. It had come to the point where Dean couldn't imagine his life without Castiel in it, and it scared him a little. He wondered fleetingly if Castiel felt the same way, but chased those thoughts from his mind the moment they entered.

"Stop it." He chastised himself, downing the last of his drink and setting the mug on the bedside table, turning off the light. He sighed again as he felt the cold creeping in again, snuggling back under the covers and shutting his eyes tight. Hopefully he could get some sleep before the heat of the hot chocolate left his body completely.

"Dean?"

Dean creaked an eye open to find Castiel standing in his doorway, wrapped up from head to toe in his duvet, shivering animatedly. The brown-haired boy opened his mouth in a yawn and leaned up on his elbow, instantly regretting it as a rush of cold air met his bare arms.

"Cas? What is it?" He asked, voice croaking with sleep. He glanced at his clock: 1:34am.

"I'm cold." Castiel replied, shuffling into the room, closing the door behind him. "I was hoping I could sleep in here."

"What?" Dean's voice wavered, this time with dopey surprise.

"I recall you being very warm to sleep next to from our slumber parties in high school, and I thought it could help." the dark-haired man told him, shifting the blanket around him to tighten it around his shoulders. "They say sharing body heat his appropriate in these situations."

"First, don't call them 'slumber parties'. Jesus!" Dean commented, a blush forming on his cheeks. Dean and Castiel had fallen asleep a number of times on Castiel's bed watching movies when they were teenagers, maybe even woke up wrapped around each other, but count on Castiel to throw a girly spin on the whole thing. Plus there were a couple other times they'd slept next to each other, but still... "Second..."

"Yes, Dean?" Castiel said, cold visible in his body language and audible in the timbre of his voice. He was running out of patience and body heat.

"Just..." Dean sighed, shuffling over and patting the bed with his hand. "Get in."

Castiel smiled and ripped the duvet off himself, throwing it over the comforter already on Dean's bed. He bent over and plugged in his nightlight, a gaudy yellow thing shaped like a bee, and Dean chuckled a little at the knowledge that his friend was still a little afraid of the dark. Dean more so felt touched that he still used the thing; it had been a Christmas gift years back when neither of them had a lot of money, still starting out in the world.

Dean laid back down and tried not to think about how the fluffy white duvet smelled like Castiel, like fresh linens, old books and faint aftershave. As much as the scent calmed him, he felt his mind traitorous for allowing such feelings to well us inside him. It was dangerous, especially since the man would be spending the night with him.

'Get yourself in check, Winchester.' Dean thought to himself, allowing his eyes to rake over his roommate just once. The dark-haired man was wearing no more than a pair of shorts and a thin white t-shirt. No wonder he was so cold. Then again, Dean was wearing the same, so who was he to judge?

Dean felt a brief breeze as Castiel lifted the covers and the bed dip as he got into bed beside him. The dark-haired man lay on his back, rubbing his hands over his own biceps under the blankets as he stared at the ceiling in the semi-darkness.

"Better?" Dean asked, lying on his side to face his roommate. He felt the urge to touch him, to help rub those biceps to get some warmth back into his skin for him, but resisted.

"Sort of." Castiel half shrugged, half shivered. He turned his head to face his friend, blue eyes sparkling with concern, searching Dean's face. He bit his lower lip with hesitation before speaking again. "I... have an idea, if you'd be amenable."

"Shoot." The brown-haired man replied, wondering what it could be.

"I think the term is 'snuggling'." Castiel finally suggested, low light hiding the slight colour gracing his cheeks at his words.

Dean took in a short breath, lost in his friend's gaze, unable to say anything for a few seconds. While snuggling was the least manly thing a guy could do in his books next to knitting and willingly watching romantic dramas (which Doctor Sexy was definitely not), he had to admit that he was totally on board with the idea.

"Yea." Dean agreed, voice low, cracking slightly. "Sure."

Castiel smiled at him and moved closer, not sure how to begin. He looked up at Dean with an expression of adorable confusion that Dean replied to with an amused smirk.

"Come here, Cas." Dean murmured, smile fond in the semidarkness.

Dean lifted the blankets in an invitation for his friend to lie up next to him, and the dark-haired man took the bait, sliding his body over until his chest touched Dean's thinly clothed side. Dean guided Castiel's head to rest on his shoulder with a gentle hand, fingers running through his hair coaxingly before he could stop himself.

Castiel relaxed immediately, snaking an arm around his friend's abdomen, humming in contentment.

"Thank you, Dean." Castiel mumbled into his roommate's chest, hugging him closer. The brown-haired boy ran his hand down Castiel's back, rubbing some heat into it slowly, soothingly. "I know you don't like 'chick-flick moments'."

"I don't think this counts." Dean replied, chuckling, hearing the finger-quotes in his words. "Plus, remember that time we went camping and had to share sleeping bags? So this isn't the first time."

"Yes, but we weren't this close." Castiel told him, recalling that night on a class camping trip where it dropped to minus ten and they'd zipped their bags together and slept in all their clothes, sides pressed against each other. The rest of the campers wondered how they'd gotten any sleep, and they'd never shared their secret, being young and easily embarrassed.

"True." Dean admitted. Not that he hadn't wanted them to be, just a little bit.

"There was that time though, after I came out to Michael." Castiel recalled out loud, his voice quiet. "When I came over after. We slept something like this."

Dean was surprised that Castiel brought up his coming out to his brother; it was still a sore spot in his life and the two siblings still didn't talk as a result. The dark-haired man had admitted his homosexuality to his older brother in college during a trip home for Christmas and ended up on Dean's doorstep in Lawrence after, eyes red from crying, asking if he could spend the night. Oh, how he'd wanted to kiss those tears away, tell him how stupid his family was for turning him away... but instead he just invited him in with a friendly hug and a warm smile.

Castiel had spent the entirety of Christmas with Dean and his collected family, of course- as if they were going to deny him a place to be- and they'd spent the evening laid out on the couch together watching talk shows after everyone had gone to bed, Deans arm wrapped comfortingly around Castiels waist as they dozed.

As Dean thought more about it, this "snuggling" bit was more of a common thing between them than he'd admitted to himself.

"Yea, I heard about that from Sammy for a long time." Dean groaned, remembering how his moose of a brother had woken them the next morning, finding them asleep together on the couch, and had proceeded to mercilessly tease him about his "boyfriend" at every opportunity. Especially now that Castiel was a staple at every family function.

"I'm sorry." the dark-haired man said, stiffening slightly in his arms.

"Hey, no, no." Dean shushed his friend, reaching his free hand to rub the arm across his back soothingly. "I don't mind. Kid's gotta tease me about something. I'm glad it's about something good."

Castiel hummed in lieu of responding, relaxing back into the embrace. He snaked a leg over Deans, intertwining them for added warmth. Dean blushed slightly against his own wishes, yawning and turning his face and burying it in Castiel's hair. He inhaled the scent of his shampoo, a light mint and lemongrass scent, closing his eyes.

"You smell good." He murmured before he knew what he was saying, sleepiness clouding his brain.

"Hmm..." Castiel mumbled into Dean's chest, hand brushing his friend's side with affection. "You too. Leather and fresh grass and... something."

Dean smiled at that, tempted to kiss his roommate's head. He rubbed his nose into his scalp lightly instead, somehow an even more intimate gesture. But Dean had already done it, and he was lost in the comfort of having Castiel in his arms, this close to sleep.

"Comfy?" Dean asked, voice barely a mutter. He felt Castiel nod minutely, and he sighed with contentment. "Awesome. G'night, angel."

"Goodnight, Dean." Castiel whispered, dragging his fingers up Dean's side one last time, apparently oblivious of the slipped pet name.

Eyes closed, warm under the pile of blankets and in each others arms, the two men let sleep claim them.

The buzz of the alarm clock filled the room. Dean groaned and reached his hand out to smack blindly at the nightstand to his right, finally hitting the offending device and stopping its incessant noise. He slid his arm back under the covers and into the warm cocoon the rest of him was in, around the body that still clung to him.

Dean turned his head to lean his face against his bed mate's forehead, lips resting on his skin just below his hairline. In his sleepiness he kissed him gently, earning a hum of contentment from the man.

The dark-haired man shifted to wrap his arm a little tighter around Dean's abdomen, fingers trailing up and down his side affectionately. He shifted his hips to gain further contact with Dean, winding his leg back between his friend's.

"Five more minutes..." Castiel mumbled, unwilling to let go of neither his roommate nor his state of sleep. "So warm..."

"No way, we'll fall back asleep." Dean muttered into Castiel's hair, rubbing his back. He knew the time and knew he could spare at least another 20 minutes, but was pretty sure he hadn't hit the snooze button and couldn't risk them being late if the alarm didn't go off again. He pressed another short kiss to his friend's forehead and patted his arm. "Come on, Cas."

"Did you just...?" Castiel half questioned, cracking open an eye. He leaned his head up slightly to look at Dean, hair mussed and sleep evident on his face.

"Oh, yea, uh... Sorry, I'm half asleep here." Dean tried, chest tensing, heart beating fast.

"Well, I'm trying to get full asleep here." Castiel replied, leaning in and brushing a quick kiss to Dean's cheek, dangerously close to his lips. He laid back down in the comfort of Dean's embrace and sighed, snuggling back in. "Five more minutes."

Dean stared down at his friend, cheek burning where Castiel's lips had met his skin. The dark-haired man's pink lips were parted slightly, his chest rising and falling gently as he let himself succumb to sleep once more, arm wrapped around Dean. Dean felt lucky to see this side of his friend, so vulnerable and so beautiful.

Before he knew it, five minutes had passed, and it was time to wake his slumbering bed mate.

"Cas." Dean coaxed, running his fingers along his arm, other hand gliding up and down his back a little too fast to be calming. "Cas, it's time to get up."

"Dean?" Castiel replied in a sleep-gravelly voice, blue eyes blinking open to meet his gaze. "What time is it?"

"Seven thirty." Dean told him, lost momentarily in the eye contact and the close proximity of his roommate's face to his own. "Time to get up, I guess."

"Nooo..." the dark-haired man complained, tightening his grip on Dean, causing the other man to smile. "Five more minutes."

"You said that five minutes ago." Dean countered with a low laugh, raising a hand to ruffle his friend's bedhead.

"And I meant it just as much." Castiel quipped, leaning in to ply Dean with another kiss to the cheek. This time, however, his aim was off, and chapped pink lips met plush rose ones.

"I'm sorry, Dean!" Castiel said quickly, sleep shaken off in an instant, beginning to pull away from his roommate. "I didn't mean to... Oh God, I know you don't..."

What?

"Cas, just stop." Dean interrupted, holding his friend tight to him. He needed clarification and he was going to get it. "I don't what, exactly?"

"You... you don't like me the way that..." Castiel began, eyes watery and more than a little frantic. He sighed in a mix of frustration and embarrassment before continuing. "Can we _please_ just forget this?"

"Look, if that sentence ends with 'the way that I like you' I'll be a very happy man." Dean admitted, throwing the proverbial ball into his bed mate's court. Eyes wide with disbelief, the dark-haired man simply nodded, searching Dean's face for signs of a joke but finding none. "Because I do."

"Seriously, Dean?" Castiel queried, leaning up on his elbow. It was Dean's turn to nod, and with that a smile broke out across Castiel's face that could have warmed the entire apartment. Dean smiled in return, reaching to cup his hand on his friend's cheek, rubbing his thumb across his morning stubble tenderly.

"Come back here." Dean requested, green eyes half lidded. Castiel licked his lips absently as he leaned forward, part of him unable to believe this was actually going to happen. The same thought was going through Dean's mind, but he didn't let it get in the way of getting what he wanted.

Their lips met once more, this time intentionally. Eyes closed, the men allowed the kiss to change from hesitant to heated in no time, pressure building like tectonic plates before an earthquake. Dean pulled Castiel up so he was lying on top of him, chests pulled flush against each other, legs intertwined. Castiel's tongue swept out against Dean's lips, begging for entrance, which the brown-haired man gladly allowed him.

Castiel sighed into the kiss as Dean's hands roamed down his back, warm and needy. He clutched the dark-haired man's behind as he rolled his hips upward experimentally, delicious friction building between them as Castiel moaned and pressed back in kind.

"Dean, God..." Castiel muttered, kissing a strip down his friend's neck, breath slightly laboured. He could feel their arousal growing between them, taunting them.

"Fuck, Cas..." Dean groaned as he pulled the smaller man against him, the man in question nibbling at the sensitive juncture where his neck met his ear. God, how he wanted to rip Castiel's clothes off and feel his skin against his own, coax moan after moan from between those gorgeous lips... "We don't have time to-"

"Call in sick." the dark-haired man ordered, voice low with passion. His gaze showed him to be deadly serious, pupils dilated with lust, bright blue irises a mere sliver of their normal size. "I'll do the same."

"God, babe, you're a bad influence." Dean chuckled, letting his fingers slip beneath the hem of his friend's sleep shirt to feel the heated skin of his torso underneath.

"You have no idea." Castiel told him, balling his fist up in Dean's t-shirt and pulling him in for a passionate kiss, all tongue and lips and fire. Dean kissed back with the same intensity as she slid the dark-haired man's shirt up his lean frame, breaking their connection only to remove it and his own.

Dean's breath hitched as their bare skin met, enticing and hot. Castiel was a solid warm mass on top of him, bucking into him through the thin layers of their underpants, which Dean was fumbling to make short work of while they made out like their lives depended on it.

"Here." Castiel murmured as he lifted his hips, allowing his friend to push the offending cloth down his hips, kicking it off completely with a wiggle of his legs. He then reached down and, with a swift pull, disrobed Dean completely.

The dark-haired man sat back for a moment, taking in the view of his roommate below him. His freckled skin shone tanned in the morning light, abs slightly obscured by a little bit of pudge from all the burgers and pie he insisted on eating. A light flush of arousal began at his cheeks and ran down to his chest, which heaved slightly with exertion.

"What?" Dean asked, suddenly a little self-conscious. Was Castiel having second thoughts?

"You're gorgeous." Castiel whispered simply, leaning back over Dean and bringing their faces close together. "You don't know how long I've waited for this."

"Same." Dean managed, clasping a hand on his friend's neck and pulling him into a kiss that conveyed all the longing he couldn't put into words. Castiel whimpered at the emotion he felt and reciprocated, lips gently melting against the brown-haired man's.

Their noises turned pornographic as Castiel laid back down to press his now-naked body to Dean's, arousal hard and evident against his own. He could feel the tense muscles of Dean's frame move as his friend slid his hands along his body, intent on feeling all of Castiel that he could. Fingers found biceps, deltoids, the sensitive small of his back, and finally his ass again, which he gripped tightly and pulled to increase the friction between them.

Dean could feel the wetness of their precome sliding between them, and it intensified the heat of desire in the pit of his stomach. As they rutted against each other, Dean wondered how far Castiel wanted to take this. Nevermind how he'd feel about it later. This was all about them, right now, about feeling good.

Taking control of the situation, Dean reached a hand towards the drawer in his bedside table and fished out a small bottle of lube. Castiel watched his friend's actions with interest.

"Cas, tell me what you want." Dean said, warming the lube bottle up with one hand.

"I want to touch you." He told the man under him, "And I want you to touch me."

"I can work with that." Dean smiled, popping the top off the lube and pouring a little into his hand. The viscous liquid was a bit cold still, but it warmed in the few seconds it took to reach between their bodies. "How about this, then?"

Castiel let out a loud moan as Dean took them both in hand, stroking them slowly from root to tip. The dark-haired man leaned his head into the crook of Dean's neck, panting as Dean continued his ministrations, gradually picking up speed.

"Oh God, yes, Dean!" Castiel cried, fucking up into Dean's hand. He placed a hand around Dean's own, threading his fingers with his friend's, squeezing to make the tunnel tighter. Drops of precome forming at the tips of their cocks mixed with the lube to form a perfect wetness surrounding them, coating them as they thrust.

"Fuck yea, Cas." Dean muttered, rocking his hips in time with his hand. He leaned his head against Castiel's ear, lips grazing his messy hair. "God, I'm so close. You're so fucking hot!"

"Yes, come for me, Dean." Castiel murmured into Dean's neck, licking the spot beneath his ear, sucking a small mark into the sensitive skin there. "Please! I need to feel you come."

"Oh fuck, yes, Cas!" Dean moaned, dick twitching between them, white spurting from him in thick ropes up his torso as release hit him hard. "Cas, I'm coming!"

"Dean, shit..." the dark-haired man groaned as he thrust a few more times into their grip before he too was coming, seed joining his friend's. He shuddered as his orgasm overtook him, hand gripping the bedsheets tight in climax. "Oh holy shit..."

"Cas." Dean said after a moment of collecting himself, kissing his roommate's hair. Was this really okay? Were they going to be okay? Were things going to change now? For the better?

Castiel lifted his head from the brown-haired man's next and gave him a soft kiss on the lips, smiling into it a little.

"Yes, Dean." He replied, a statement, not a question. Yes to everything.

They disentangled and Dean pushed the covers off himself, cursing the cool air as he grabbed some tissues from the bed by his bed and cleaned himself off. He passed a few to Castiel who thanked him and wiped his hand dry from lube and semen.

Pulling the covers up again, Dean laid back on his pillow, sated and happy. He turned to find Castiel looking at him, a similar look of pleasure on his face, a gentle smile on his pink lips.

"So." Dean said, leaning up on his elbow to hover over his bed mate. "Still going to call in sick?"

"Oh, definitely." Castiel told him, reaching up to run his fingers through Dean's hair. "There's nowhere else I'd rather be today than right here."

"Ditto." Dean agreed with a smile, leaning down to plant another kiss on his roommate- one of many they'd be sharing from then on out.

"We should have told them beforehand." Castiel mumbled, feet shuffling as he adjusted his shirt, readying himself.

They stood on the porch of Bobby's house, ready to knock on the door and help celebrate Sam's birthday. That is, they would be if Dean's boyfriend wasn't freaking out a little bit about being Dean's boyfriend, a fact that people had been assuming for years at that point anyhow.

"You know how I like to surprise people." Dean replied, shifting the present from one arm to the other. "Besides, they love you already. You've been coming for what, a decade now?"

"Never as your boyfriend, Dean." the dark-haired man commented, shooting him a look. "I feel like I'm being thrown to the wolves here."

"What?! Listen, we're just going to go in there, sing happy birthday, announce our relationship, eat some pie and get out of there." Dean promised, reaching up to fix the tie Castiel had insisted on wearing but couldn't knot properly. Deciding he needed two hands, he held out the package to his boyfriend and worked on retying the strip of silk for him. "If you get uncomfortable we can leave, just say the words."

"I'm uncomfortable. Let's leave." Castiel intoned dryly.

"Ha-ha." Dean replied as he tucked the bottom of the tie back into Castiel's sweater vest, patting it for good measure. "You have to at least try."

"Alright..." Castiel sighed, tilting his head, slightly perplexed at the whole situation. Dean took the gift from him and put it on the bench by the door, taking the dark-haired man by the hands.

"Tell you what, how about a kiss for good luck?" Dean offered, wagging his eyebrows.

"Dean, we're practically in front of your family!" Castiel chastised, an affronted look on his face.

"Not until we knock on that door." Dean told him, and closed the gap to press his lips to his boyfriend's.

Castiel immediately melted, sighing into the kiss and letting the stress of the situation ease from his body. He let Dean unclasp one of his hands in favour of cupping his cheek, tilting his head slightly to deepen the kiss a little- not enough to be indecent, but enough to become passionate. Castiel looped a finger through one of Dean's belt loops and pulled him closer, revelling in the familiar feel of the man against him.

When they finally pulled apart, both men had somewhat goofy smiles on their faces, and Castiel was feeling much better.

"You win." A female voice range out from the doorway. Castiel jumped, and Dean turned to see Jo and Sam standing in the open doorway, Jo handing Sam a $20 bill. Despite his winnings, Sam was throwing Dean a pretty stellar bitch face.

"I thought you'd never come up for air." Sam commented, leaning on the door frame, arms crossed in front of his broad chest.

"Shut up, bitch." Dean called at him, the urge to flip him off rising.

"Get in the house, jerk. You too, Castiel." Sam retorted, turning around and walking back inside, long hair flopping as he went. "And bring my present!"

"Dean," Castiel began, standing still on the porch. "I'm uncomfortable. Let's g-"

"Absolutely not!" Dean interrupted him, grabbing his hand and leading him into the house past Jo. "We still have the rest of the family to tell."

"Not in the same way, I hope!" Jo shouted to the couple as she grabbed the present and closed the door, following them inside towards the festivities in the backyard.

End


End file.
